Account - Sign in or register

Account - Create your Pocketmags Account

Jellyfish Connect Ltd (owner of Pocketmags) would like to send you occasional emails regarding our loyalty scheme, special promotions, products and complimentary services. We'll always keep your data safe and secure and you may unsubscribe from these emails at any time. If you would prefer NOT to receive these please tick here.

Account - Welcome back!

This website use cookies and similar technologies to improve the site and to provide customised content and advertising. By using this site, you agree to this use. To learn more, including how to change your cookie settings, please view our Cookie Policy

Schlocky horror show

In 1986 Stephen King, whose novels had already been adapted for the screen by directors such as Brian De Palma, Stanley Kubrick, David Cronenberg, John Carpenter and Rob Reiner, decided to make a film of his own. To signal the advent of Maximum Overdrive, a ludicrously camp horror film in which a passing comet sends the world’s machines on a human-killing spree (crushing people with steamrollers, zapping them with arcade cabinets, hacking at them with electric carving knives), the producers cooked up a trailer in which King himself, bearded and intense, stepped forward from a dark backdrop to look the audience in the eye. “A lot of people have directed Stephen King novels and stories,” he declared, “and I finally decided, if you want something done right, you ought to do it yourself.”

By the time of Maximum Overdrive‘s release, however, the King of Horror had changed his story slightly. Appearing on a Canadian chat show to promote the film, he offered a disconcertingly frank take on the film business. “I’m not rehearsing my Academy Award speech,” he said amiably, with a forthrightness only partly attributable to the booze and coke habit that had him in its claws for most of the 1980s. “I don’t even think I want to make another movie. It’s a primitive way to create. I mean, it’s interesting for that reason, because you have to overcome so many odds.” As the interviewer blinked in confusion, King narrowed his eyes. “You know what I’d really like to have?” he said. “A pair of lizardskin boots.”

About Prospect Magazine

In Prospect’s October issue: Andrew Adonis, Steve Richards, Gaby Hinsliff, Rachel Sylvester and Jennifer Williams look at the idea that leadership is the only thing that matters when it comes to elections. Adonis leads the cover package arguing exactly that point and outlining his ratings of the leaders who have competed every election in the UK and the United States since 1944—Richards offers a rebuttal. Hinsliff, Sylvester and Williams profile three potential leaders in waiting—Amber Rudd, Jo Swinson and Angela Rayner. Elsewhere in the issue we map out the potential road the UK might travel down to stay in the European Union and explore the relationship between UN Secretary General António Guterres and Donald Trump as the two prepare to meet at the UN.
Also in this issue: Philip Collins on the similarities between Britain’s Brexiteers and the Gaullists of yesteryear, John Bercow explains how parliament could function better and our “View from” comes from Nairobi, where the recent election result has been annulled.